A reputed Mexican Mafia leader who prosecutors said once tried to seize control of drug sales in Norwalk and the San Gabriel Valley has been charged with orchestrating a large-scale extortion scheme, according to authorities. Ralph "Perico" Rocha, 42, was ordered held in lieu of $4-million bail at the Men's Central Jail in Los Angeles. Rocha was arrested without incident Nov. 19 as he was about to leave his Moreno Valley home, said Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore.

In the coming disaster movie "2012," tragedy strikes Randy's Donuts in Inglewood when its giant rooftop donut becomes unhinged and is last seen bouncing down the street in the direction of star John Cusack's limo. The incident is just digital magic, of course. In real life, Randy's -- once a member of the now-defunct Big Donut chain -- is very much intact, as 405 Freeway drivers know well. But over the last half century, a half dozen former Big Donuts have disappeared, gobbled up by developers.

When the slide show flashed a photo of a line of Marines in camouflage fatigues, the solemn chapel in Covina erupted in laughter. There stood 5-foot-4 Esau Ivan De La Peña-Hernandez, sandwiched between recruits a good foot taller than he, facing forward with his signature pluck and bravado. De La Pena was a little guy, but he had a big heart to go with his big name, friends and family members said at his memorial service.

Re "Woman held in crash that killed one USC student, injured another," April 4 Why does it take a reward to make people do the right thing -- in this case, offer a tip leading police to the alleged hit-and-run driver who killed a USC student last month? What happened to integrity? What happened to moral principles? Charlotte Loff La Puente

Police spent a little more than an hour Sunday trying to find one of their own cruisers after someone apparently took it for a joy ride and then stole two weapons inside before ditching the car. Lt. Brad Keller said the cruiser was stolen shortly after 3 a.m. when officers were dispatched to a party in the 6800 block of Forbes Avenue. Keller said he was not sure how the cruiser was stolen, but that it is "going to be under investigation." West Covina police found the vehicle about 12 miles away at 4:10 a.m. on Ballista Avenue in La Puente.

Re "A hand on the contraband," Feb. 20 The article (and picture) on weapons confiscated at L.A. County courthouses raised more questions than they answered. Does the court system consider markers to be weapons? There appear to be numerous laundry markers and dry erase pens in the pile shown in the photo. There are also tape measures. Are tape measures weapons? If so, I'm going to be more careful the next time I let a carpenter in my house. If courthouse officials are worried that tape measures could be used to strangle someone, they should confiscate every belt too. The courthouse rules are too strict, and citizens don't know the rules until security turns them away.

A 22-year-old Duarte man was arrested after allegedly running a red light and hitting another car broadside Saturday night, killing the 61-year-old driver, a California Highway Patrol officer said. Elliott M. Imm was driving south on Valinda Avenue with a 22-year-old female passenger about 11:20 p.m. when he allegedly failed to stop at a red light at Temple Avenue and crashed into the driver's side of a 2003 Chrysler, police said. The driver of the Chrysler, a resident of Valinda, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.